Raila Gives Ruto 14-Day Ultimatum To Lower Food Prices, Taxes

By: Joseph Mutua Ndonga

Worth Noting:

• Kenyans are reeling under the weight of high cost of living. They were angry and tired because the Ruto administration had turned deaf ear to their plight.
• The only option left is to take their country back. I’m ready to give them a marching order to participate in massive mass action.
• In apparent reference to the handshake between Raila and former President Uhuru Kenyatta, Dr Ruto said: those people wasted five years. They never bothered to address the plight of the poor ordinary people.
• It would appear Raila and his handlers were opposing this law out of fear that it is designed to gag him. This is simply because the law was enjoying the support of President Ruto and his key allies.

Azimio La Umoja-One Kenya Coalition leader Raila Odinga has given President William Ruto a 14-day ultimatum to lower the cost of food and taxes.

Speaking during a prayer meeting at Jeevanjee Garden in Nairobi CBD, he also called for the audit of servers that were used to harmonize and tally the votes cast in August 9 presidential polls.

This should be done by a reputable organization.

He further called for the suspension of ongoing process of recruiting the new IEBC commissioners.

This is until the bipartisan electoral commission that enjoyed confidence and trust of Kenyans had been put in place. Elections deceit must come to an end.

If Ruto fails to heed this call in 14 days, he warned him. We will escalate this battle to another level.

Kenyans are reeling under the weight of high cost of living. They were angry and tired because the Ruto administration had turned deaf ear to their plight.

The only option left is to take their country back. I’m ready to give them a marching order to participate in massive mass action.

But in a swift rejoinder, President Ruto said he is not worried by noises from the opposition leader. Let him continue with his mass action. I know he will get tired.

He spoke during the launch of Nairobi River Regeneration Commission, an event held just 3 kilometers from the venue of Raila’s rally at Jivanjee.

In apparent reference to the handshake between Raila and former President Uhuru Kenyatta, Dr Ruto said: those people wasted five years. They never bothered to address the plight of the poor ordinary people.

They only pushed the selfish agenda of their families, ruling elite, cronies and rich.

When I took over, the packet of 2kg Unga was retailing at Sh230. The price of the same brand has now dropped to Sh180.

Let them give me time. In the next few months, I will ensure the price has come to down to Sh120.

For me, the exchanges between the two leaders were not unhelpful to the cause of ‘Wanjiku’, ordinary Kenyan.

If you talk to them, this is what they will tell you. The time of election campaign is now over. We voted and elected a new government.

Our decision was informed by a raft of promises that President Ruto and his Deputy Rigathi Gachagua made to us.

This is the time to walk the talk. We want them to fulfill the pledges.

As for the opposition leader, he is entitled to play the role of whistle blower. Apart from exposing ills associated with the government, the opposition ought to always put the government in check.

The proposal to create and entrench the Office of Opposition Leader in the constitution has been drafted.

This is a good proposal. We ask Raila to reconsider his position and support it.

This position will be held by the presidential candidate who emerged second in the elections.

Therefore, it means Raila will automatically take it.

This will give him an opportunity to push the agenda of ordinary mwananchi in parliament and outside.

The proposed law, however, requires him to perform his duties in a constructive and structured manner.

It would appear Raila and his handlers were opposing this law out of fear that it is designed to gag him. This is simply because the law was enjoying the support of President Ruto and his key allies.

I hope I’m not wrong here. I have been hearing Azimio luminaries reiterating that they have majority of the lawmakers in both houses of parliament and senate. This proposed law will be tabled and debated in these houses. So, this gives them a leeway of mobilizing their numbers to introduce amendments and lobby their colleagues in Kenya Kwanza to support them. This will help to remove the grey areas that they were uncomfortable with.

The call for mass action is designed to disrupt and sabotage the government agenda.

If allowed to go unchecked, the situation could degenerate to a full blown chaos and violence. This is what happened in the aftermath of 2007 and 2013 Presidential elections, respectively. Kenyans reached to a point where they took unto their own hands.

I’m talking about this out of experience. I actively participated in NCEC/NCA-led massive mass action in mid and late 90s. Our clarion was; ‘No Reforms, No Election’.

This was not a selfish fight. We were fighting for a noble and worth cause of clamoring for a new people driven constitutional dispensation.

Today, Kenyans are enjoying the fruits of the new constitution that was promulgated in 2010.

I remember Raila was a key player in run up to the referendum. He always described the draft constitution as the most progressive and likened to American and South Africa constitutions, respectively.

Earlier during the mass action, I remember there was a time we had invited Dr William Ruto, the current President, to the NCEC forum at Serena Hotel. Then, I was the secretary of the political affairs committee.

Ruto made a very good presentation. At the time he was a member of Parliament for Eldoret North.

Dr Ruto would later join the camp led by Evangelical churches that was opposed to the draft. He argued that, If adopted, it would promote immoralities such as gaysm and homosexuality.

Today, Dr Ruto is wearing the shoe that Raila worn at the time. He is a staunch defender of this constitution.

He has not however charged his position on matters touching on immoralities. He still believes the same sex marriage is unacceptable.

This topic is however considered to be a hot potato. This is because it is being pushed by the Western countries particularly the US.

Kenya and other developing countries in Africa fear antagonizing these powerful nations. This is because they rely on them for financial support and in other fields of trade technology, and security. This is just to mention a few.

Joseph Mutua Ndonga is a writer and political analyst based on Nairobi